As Japan sends a wooden satellite into space, experts say astronauts could one day live in wooden structures

After Japanese scientists launched the world's first wooden satellite into space last week, experts in Canada are proposing ways wood could become a bigger part of space exploration.

The palm-sized LignoSat, made from the wood of a magnolia tree, was sent to the International Space Station earlier this month.

Developed by Kyoto University and construction company Sumitomo Forestry, it will be sent into space for a test flight next month.

Aaron Boley, co-director of the Outer Space Institute in Vancouver, said LignoSat could demonstrate that wood is a more sustainable alternative for making satellites as people become more dependent on it.

He said most satellites are designed to burn up in the atmosphere when their lifespan is over, depositing materials in the atmosphere that could be harmful – but wood would be less polluting if burned.

Boley told CBC The break of day North that with projects like LignoSat we are “fundamentally changing our relationship with space.”

He said it is important to test how natural materials hold up in space as we look at long-term human habitation beyond Earth.

“Plants will be an important part of humanity moving forward in space exploration,” Boley said.

Wooden room structures

This also includes the possibility of using wood as a building material in the room.

“Building structures where people might stay for extended periods of time is something someone might consider using wood for,” says Stavros Avramidis, head of the wood sciences department at the University British Columbia.

Wood is naturally insulating and would provide better temperature and moisture regulation than other materials such as metal or concrete, he said.

Wood could potentially even work better in space than on Earth, because fungi and wood-eating insects that cause decay cannot survive in space.

The main challenge facing engineers, according to Avramidis, is the degradation of wood by radiation, such as powerful X-rays and gamma rays from the sun.

“If you take a house from Earth and move it to the moon, it will disintegrate pretty quickly,” he said.

Some kind of radiation-resistant wood would have to be made, he suggested—and if so, he said even spaceships could be made of wood.

The LignoSat project aims to provide hard data on the extraterrestrial durability of wood.

The satellite is expected to remain in orbit for six months, with its onboard electronic components measuring how wood tolerates the extreme environment of space, and at temperatures ranging from -100 to 100 C every 45 minutes as LignoSat moves from darkness moves towards sunlight and back. again.

Avramidis says he will watch with interest as wood takes a first step toward a bigger role in space exploration.

“An ocean starts with a drop of water,” he said.